Something to Dance For
by skimmonsfiction
Summary: The Girl has been a part of Jemma's dreams for as long as she can remember, but she never would have imagined she was real, and that Jemma has been in her dreams too. (Title from the song by Zendaya)
1. Chapter 1

_October 20_

 _Last night's dream was another of the more unusual ones. It was the kind that makes me wonder where my unconscious brain is getting ideas, because it did not feel like my own dream and never would I be in that situation. I was in the back of a van, and it was full of computer equipment and the walls were covered in articles cut from The New York Press, a newspaper I've never heard of. Either it is a company in the shadow of the New York Times that my brain picked up from the street somewhere, or it is one of the strangely specific details I dream up. Either way, I was in the van covered in newspapers with the Girl. She was afraid, I knew that much. The door was thrown open and we were both taken, and that was when I woke up._

Jemma gently closed her journal and set it on her nightstand with the pen before slipping out of the sheets and getting ready for work. She'd been tracking her dreams in journals since she realized at nine years old that the same girl was in every single one of her dreams, despite having never seen her before in her life. Her mother always told her it was like an imaginary friend while she was asleep, but Jemma didn't know what to think of it and began logging it. For what purpose, she didn't know, but she was 25 now and still hadn't stopped the habit. A bookshelf in her bedroom in her apartment showed it; one row was filled with journals. They started with pink princess journals on the left and gradually matured along with her age until they were plain black or brown on the right, and every single page contained a dream that included both herself and her imaginary friend.

That was just her night life though, and Jemma had long since gotten used to ignoring her curiosity and getting ready for work. She had patients to get to at the hospital that Jemma was sure didn't want her daydreaming at work. After a quick shower and a bowl of cereal, she was out the door with her coat and headed to the coffee shop to grab her usual in preparation for her long shift on call. Everything was going as normal, she got her coffee and was still sipping on it after she changed into her scrubs for the day.

A few minutes later, she was paged to the ER to run the place while the attending that was in charge went to an emergency surgery. Jemma tossed her coffee into the trash and was greeted by numerous interns trying to suck up to her the moment she arrived in the ER.

"During that surgery you had yesterday, that was the fastest appendectomy I've ever seen, it was incredible!" One told her.

"Well the APPY was the least important thing. In trauma repairs you have to deal with the more minor injuries quickly and efficiently to get to the bigger problem. Now get to work and learn something, there's a patient complaining of chest pain in bed three." Jemma shoved the chart at the young intern and gave everyone their jobs before she reached for the last chart to take care of it herself. Young woman, age 24, laceration on the face.

"So how did you end up with this cut?" Jemma was smiling when she approached the bed, but when her eyes looked at the woman's whole face instead of just the cut, her jaw dropped. It was her imaginary friend.

"I-" The woman looked just as shocked as she did, if not more so, all wide eyes and shock. "You're-" the woman was just as inept as Jemma, who was just standing there dumbly holding the chart while her patient's cut continued bleeding a bit.

"You know who I am?" Jemma asked, clutching her pen tightly. There was no way this girl had dreams about her too, that was unreal. It was impossible and Jemma couldn't even begin to comprehend it. The woman just nodded, still just as confused.

Jemma's pager began buzzing at her hip, and Jemma was close to swearing at its timing and shutting the thing off. She couldn't just ignore a 911 page, but she didn't want to let this strange occurrence fly over her head either.

"…Daisy." Jemma read off the chart. Daisy nodded and Jemma lunged forward, uncapping her pen with her mouth and scribbling her number on Daisy's arm. "Call me later, we need to… talk." Jemma stuttered, stepping away and handing Daisy's chart to the nearest intern.

"Wait, don't I get to know your name?" Daisy was smiling when Jemma turned back around, and it made Jemma's stomach turn over.

"Jemma Simmons." She smiled, gesturing to the name sewn on her lab coat. "I have to go. Call me." She ordered before taking off at a speed walk to answer the page.


	2. Chapter 2

"So are you going to say something now, or are we just going to sit here and stare at each other?" Daisy quirked an eyebrow while taking a sip of her coffee. It made Jemma snap out of whatever trance she had been in. She sat up straight and cleared her throat, even went as far as to open her mouth to speak, but she still had no words. How could she?

"I don't really know. We're complete strangers." When Jemma finally spoke, she was frowning. She wasn't sure what Daisy was expecting and she wasn't sure what she was expecting herself. Things like this didn't happen every day.

"Please." Daisy scoffed, making Jemma even more confused. "I know that you're a doctor-"

"Well obviously-" Jemma retorted, but immediately shut her mouth when Daisy held up her finger, signaling her to stop talking.

"I know that you have a best friend named Leopold, which is ridiculous, I can see why you call him Fitz. I know that your worst nightmare is getting a B on a test, I know that you have a ridiculous irrational fear of jellybeans, and I know that you have a birthmark right here." Daisy touched her finger to her own waist right where Jemma knew she had an especially large freckle on her own body. She was in utter shock.

"My fear of jellybeans is valid. Between Harry Potter and that game Bean Boozled, I am right in fearing putting those atrocities in my mouth." Jemma huffed, but Daisy was laughing.

"That's what you chose to comment on?" She couldn't stop laughing and it made Jemma's temper flare slightly as she got more defensive, but she needed answers and the only person who might help her find them was sitting across from her.

"Wait, how do you know I have a birthmark?" Jemma suddenly remembered as it all sunk in. Daisy had a devilish smirk on her face.

"Remember that dream you had when you were fifteen and started… noticing girls?" Daisy asked. Jemma's face went red immediately as she remembered the vivid dream.

"Oh, god! That was you!" Jemma covered her face with her hands and suddenly she couldn't get the image of Daisy naked out of her head. "I am sosorry, this is so embarrassing."

"No, no, don't apologize. It was awakening, if you know what I mean." Daisy joked. She caught her bottom lip between her teeth suggestively and Jemma swore her skin was on fire. Things were slowly starting to click into place, if that was even possible, and suddenly Jemma's mood fell.

"So if you know those things about me from my- our- dreams, that means that you're-"

"A foster child, yeah." Daisy finished for her. There were no jokes this time. Jemma sighed and reached for Daisy's hand without thinking about it. Somehow it felt like they already knew each other. They had gone from childish dreams of playing and monsters under the bed through puberty and through whatever adulthood was so far. Daisy glanced down at their hands with a strange look though, and Jemma quickly pulled away.

"Sorry." She said quietly.

"No, it's fine, I just- I don't know." Daisy shook her head and took another sip from her cup. Jemma nodded even though she didn't really understand.

"So what was up with that dream last night? You got us kidnapped, as I recall." Jemma changed the subject, but she didn't sound too light hearted about it in case maybe this was a sensitive fear. Daisy chuckled though, so Jemma figured it was ok. "What's up with your obsession with the New York Press?" She grinned, and so did Daisy, so Jemma considered it a win.

"I work for the Press, I'm a journalist. I sometimes get stories from some pretty sketchy sources, so you know. There's always a bit of danger, but that's what makes it fun." Daisy explained. It was all making sense. She had seen quite a few strange dreams that had to do with computers, so it was probable that Daisy had a talent for it.

Just when they were starting to get used to each other's company, Jemma's pager beeped at her, reminding her that a trauma surgeon was never really on break.

"I'm sorry, I have to go." Jemma grabbed her things and got up from the booth, giving her company an apologetic smile.

"Oh, okay." Daisy seemed disappointed and Jemma wanted to stay, but she really didn't have a choice. "Will I ever see you again? During the day?" She asked. Daisy was nervous, and it made Jemma bubble a bit inside.

"Don't lose my number." Jemma replied, giving her a wink before she had to hurry away from her for a patient yet again.


	3. Chapter 3

_"Run faster, goddammit!" Daisy was shouting behind her, pushing at her back and shoving her in an attempt to get them to move more quickly through the city. It was only half working. Her little boosts would push Jemma harder and faster, but she was stumbling and struggling to keep up. She was not a runner._

 _"Shit!" Daisy grabbed the back of Jemma's backpack and yanked her to a stop. There was another pack of them up ahead, they were quickly being trapped in from all sides._

 _"This way!" Daisy shouted, and Jemma couldn't do anything but follow as they dashed into an alley on their right to get away from the bloodthirsty undead. Much to their misfortune, the alley was blocked by a chain link fence, and the walkers had already started pouring in from behind them. They threw their bags over the top and tried to climb over, but the walkers were on them in seconds, groaning and hissing and grabbing for their ankles. They were so close, but Jemma lost her grip and the pull from the walkers was enough to drag her down-_

Jemma shot up in bed, still breathing heavily from the adrenaline. She wiped a sheen of sweat from her brow and took a long drink of the water on her nightstand. Once she had calmed down, she grabbed her phone, and, squinting at the sudden bright light in the otherwise dark room, sent an annoyed text.

 _Jemma: I assume that was yours. Thanks for the heart attack._

Jemma groaned and tossed her phone aside. This was supposed to be her first two day break in a long time and she had been planning on sleeping for a full ten hours, but she wasn't the only factor. Jemma fell back into the pillows are stared up at the ceiling fan as it spun around, stirring up the air and cooling her off.

A few moments later, her phone buzzed and Jemma snatched it up.

 _Daisy: My bad. Watched the Walking Dead before bed._

Jemma rolled her eyes and prepared to reply, but she was cut off by another vibration.

 _Daisy: Has anyone ever told you you're a crappy runner?_

 _Jemma: Don't go insulting me in your dream world. And hey, you were the one who decided the city was the best place to look for supplies._

 _Daisy: Fine, you pick the dream next time :P_

 _Jemma: If I could I would ;)_

Jemma didn't realize how suggestive her silly reply may have sounded, especially after their talk about that dream when they were fifteen. They'd only spoken in person twice, and briefly, and here Jemma was saying things that sounded like innuendos. She instantly wished there was an unsend button and nearly held her breath as the three little dots that indicated that Daisy was typing remained on her screen.

 _Daisy: Too bad. Would have liked to see what you came up with. I guess I'm stuck with surgery dreams instead xD_

Relieved Daisy didn't seem weirded out, Jemma finally took a breath and tried to calm down to have a normal, relaxed conversation at two in the morning.

 _Jemma: How about you come over to my flat instead? We can order in since I can't cook at all, and maybe we can watch the Walking Dead together, if I'm going to end up seeing it anyway?_

It was a risky invite, Jemma knew, but there was no way she wasn't going to get to know Daisy during daylight hours if they were with each other every night. It may have sounded a little bit like a date, but Jemma couldn't say she would mind if that's what Daisy thought it was.

 _Daisy: Sounds awesome. Send me your address and a time, I work my own hours so I'm free whenever. Goodnight, Jemma._

 _Jemma: Goodnight, Daisy. No more nightmares, please._

Jemma was smiling in the dark as she rested her phone back on the nightstand and rolled over onto her side to fall back asleep.

* * *

Jemma did another walkthrough of her flat, making sure everything was in order and she hadn't left anything lying around. She was more nervous about having Daisy over than she felt like she should be. Something was stopping her from telling Fitz, so she didn't even have him to talk to. It was like she needed to know for sure all of this was real before she told anyone, but she wasn't sure how much proof she would need to finally be convinced.

A knock at the door startled Jemma so much that she flinched, but she wasn't sure why. It wasn't as though she weren't expecting company.

Jemma brushed her fingers through her hair one last time before she finally stepped up to the door and opened it, but she quickly realized it was not Daisy, just the Chinese food she'd ordered in. As she took the two bags and paid for it, she noticed she had spent quite a bit more money than what seemed reasonable, but she had gotten a lot. She was so nervous she hadn't even been thinking.

As Jemma was unpacking the boxes from the bags and placing them on the coffee table in front of the tv in the living space, her door was knocked on again and she almost tipped one of the boxes over in her haste to finish and get to the door.

"Daisy! It's lovely to see you again." Jemma grinned and held the door open for her friend, noting the strange look on Daisy's face. She looked surprised, and Jemma wondered if it was because she was acting so strange herself.

"You're such a spaz." Daisy chuckled at Jemma when she closed the door behind them and hurried back to her side.

"I brought cheap beer. I don't know if you like drinking, but I figured you covered the food, so I'd bring the beverage." Daisy shrugged and Jemma saw anxiety in her eyes for a split second before it was covered up and hidden away.

"Excellent. Right." Jemma nodded. They stood there for a few awkward seconds, just looking at each other like they had at the coffee shop. It was too difficult to get used to. The girl that she had been endlessly told was just a dream was standing right in front of her, holding a six pack of beer.

"So, the Walking Dead?" Daisy saved them both by breaking the silence and pushing them forward, just like she had in the dream.

"Right, of course." Jemma gestured to the small living area, where she had food on the coffee table and netflix pulled up on the TV.

"Are you expecting the whole hospital staff? That's a lot of food." Daisy joked when she plopped down on the couch after adding the beer to the near potluck. Jemma's cheeks flushed with embarrassment that she tried and failed to hide. She sat down on the opposite side of the couch from Daisy, to leave the appropriate amount of space between them, of course.

"I wasn't sure what you liked, so I may have ordered a bit of almost everything." Jemma admitted, giving a slight shrug of her shoulders.

"No, you're fine." Daisy smiled. She could tell her teasing was a bit much for Jemma, who seemed a little more sensitive than herself. She didn't want to make her uncomfortable. "This is my kind of meal." She grinned. Jemma was clearly the more shy out of the pair of them, so Daisy pulled two beers from the packaging and handed one to her. Maybe the alcohol would help loosen her up a bit. If Jemma was anything like the girl she knew from her dreams, she just needed a little push.

"Oh, alright. Perfect." Jemma grinned and returned the favor by handing Daisy a plastic fork from the bag and a random box to start with. She grabbed one of her own and was pleased to find orange chicken. Once she'd started the first episode of the show, she popped a piece into her mouth and offered the open box to Daisy while she was chewing.

"Thanks. This is my favorite." Daisy took a piece of chicken and offered her the dish in her box, and they continued on in the same fashion, snacking on a bit from each box until they had blown through four episodes, had stuffed themselves, and were rapidly growing more and more sleepy.

* * *

 _"What do you think, Daisy, spring or winter?" Jemma asked through a mouthful of cereal._

 _"Whatever you want, Jemma. It'll be the best day of my life whenever it is." Daisy's arms snaked across Jemma's shoulders from behind, and Jemma giggled and squirmed away from a wet kiss on her cheek._

 _"But think about it. If it was in spring we could do it outside, near a lake somewhere, with all kinds of flowers. But if it was in winter, it could be in a cabin somewhere, covered in snow. We could wear red." Jemma said the last part like wearing red was somehow the deal breaker, and it made Daisy laugh. Jemma put the magazines down on the counter and twisted her head some to see Daisy behind her._

 _"I think they're both fantastic ideas. I want whatever you want." Daisy told her, but Jemma was pouting. She wanted Daisy to help her choose, the day was supposed to be both of theirs._

 _"But you would look irresistibly sexy in a red wedding dress." Daisy was only half joking and she nibbled at Jemma's ear._

When Jemma's eyes flashed open, she was sure her cheeks were as red as the dress Daisy had just been imagining her in.

"Morning, Sunshine." Daisy groaned, and Jemma realized with quite a bit of surprise that she had been practically lying on top of her on the couch and her sudden startle had jostled her awake.

"Was that yours?" Jemma asked anxiously, but what was concerning was that she couldn't tell. It didn't quite feel like it was one hundred percent hers, but it wasn't as foreign as the zombie nightmare had been.

"I don't know, was it not yours?" Daisy was frowning, and it made Jemma scramble off of the couch. Without replying, Jemma slipped around into the bedroom and grabbed her journal, frantically writing down the dream before she could forget any of the details. Maybe they meant something that she hadn't figured out yet.

"What are you doing?" Daisy's voice made Jemma jump, and she snapped the journal shut and hid it behind her back, despite knowing it would do absolutely nothing. Daisy was already scanning the room and her eyes had landed on the bookshelf.

"Are these…?" Just the beginning of Daisy's question told Jemma that she already knew what the journals were as she pulled one off the shelf that was blue and covered in peace signs. She wanted to tell Daisy to leave them alone and respect her privacy, but it also sort of felt like they belonged to Daisy too.

"I remember this one." Daisy smiled as she read along one of the pages from when they were eleven. Jemma didn't need to look to know which one she was talking about. The most significant dream from that year was when Jemma thought she had a crush on a boy at school. She had dreamt that she admitted she liked him, but he laughed at her and made fun of her. Daisy had punched him in the face and called him an asshole.

"So did you ever actually tell him?" Daisy looked up, grinning, and Jemma couldn't help but laugh.

"No, not after that dream. Are you kidding?" Jemma smirked, gently pulling the journal away and replacing it where it belonged. It had disturbed a layer of dust, having gone untouched since Jemma moved into the apartment and put it there.

"If he did do that during daylight hours, my fist and I would find him." Daisy wiggled her eyebrows and held up a closed fist jokingly. "Any idiot who doesn't like you needs some sense knocked into him." Daisy sounded like she was joking, but it seemed like there was a small layer of awkward flirting underneath. The only problem was that Jemma wasn't exactly the best reader of human emotions, so she couldn't be sure. She didn't know how to respond, so she ignored the strong pull she was feeling toward Daisy and settled for a soft smile.

Daisy just looked at her for a moment, debating, and Jemma saw it coming a split second before Daisy moved closer and cupped her face, tilted her head, and pressed a firm kiss to her lips. Jemma kissed her back and her hands were instantly on her, one on the back of her head, holding her firmly, and the other grabbing a fistful of the leather jacket she hadn't taken off before they fell asleep.

This was something that was a long time coming, despite having only met three times in person now. They were strangers, but they weren't. They hadn't spent much time together, but they had. They hadn't seen each other at their worst, but they had. And they had seen each other at their best, and at everything in between. They had seen the strangest things about each other. Past, present, and future. Real and fake, nightmares and aspirations. They knew each other on a much deeper level than they thought possible. They had just skipped a few steps and didn't know how to really talk.

They had fallen back onto Jemma's bed and Daisy's jacket was on the floor before they knew what they were doing. Daisy's hand was gripping at Jemma's inner thigh and suddenly she couldn't breathe.

"Wait-" Jemma was choking on the oxygen in her lungs and she was pushing against the warm body above her. Daisy stopped when she asked her to and sat up, rolling off of her.

"Did I do something?" Daisy looked so concerned, so kind, and Jemma felt guilty for worrying her.

"No, I just-" she had to take a breath and think for a moment before she spoke. She needed her brain to form words to express the strange feelings she was having, but she didn't know how. "Where are your parents?" She blurted out. It was a terrible, awful mistake, but she had already said it and Daisy already looked confused.

"What I mean is that I really, really like you." Jemma tried to explain. This made Daisy smile, and Jemma didn't know how to express how happy that made her either.

"But I want to know more about you. I know you, but not about you, do you know what I mean?" Jemma asked. It was confusing and she barely understood it herself, so she could hardly expect Daisy to get it.

"I do. There's only so much we can get from dreams. They aren't real, no matter how much they feel that way." Daisy nodded. "I don't really know anything about my parents except their names, but that took a long time to find out on its own. I grew up in the foster system and as soon as I aged out I left. I live in a van- by choice, I promise- and I love my job as a reporter. My favorite color is purple, And I got the cut on my head earlier by accidentally smacking my head on the top of the van when I was getting in. I'm a klutz like that." Daisy was beaming and Jemma realized the more she talked that Daisy was just filling in holes. It was like she knew Daisy's personality, as rocks in a jar, from her dreams. What she didn't have was the sand that filled in the empty space, which were her experiences. It was probably the same both ways.

"I'm sorry about your family." Jemma said, but Daisy seemed to shrug it off like she had long since gotten used to it.

"I was raised as an only child in England by my parents. I graduated med school by seventeen and moved here to complete my residency. I really don't have all that much history." Jemma shared.

"Are you kidding? That's awesome, you're like some kind of genius, huh?" Daisy crossed her legs and looked to be getting comfortable. Jemma did the same. She was content to spend her second day off here with Daisy, just learning things about each other while they were awake.


End file.
